Ironing board



H. B. FAY

IRONING BOARD March 9, 1943.

Filed Jan. 24, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fig.1.

i .5. /f lZ INVENTOR. #09405 5 FA) arch 9;, H. B. FAY I IRONING BOARD Filed Jan. 24, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. HOE-ACE 15. BY BY fl AMkZ$M9 I ATTORNEY-5- Patented Mar. 9, 1943 IRONING BOARD Horace B. Fay, Willoughby, Ohio, assignor to The Gridiron Steel Company, Cleveland, Ohio, a

corporation of Ohio Application January 24, 1940, Serial No. 315,403

1 Claim.

The present invention, relating as indicated to ironing tables, is particularly concerned with the manufacture of a metallic structural element adapted for use as the top of an ironing table or analogous structure in which strength, absence of fire danger. low weight and low cost are important. The invention, while adapted for various uses as will be evident from its construction as hereinafter described will here be illustrated in the form of a folding ironing table of generally conventional type. This application is a continuation in part of my co-pending application for United States Letters Patent Serial No. 223,441, filed August 6, 1938;

The object of my invention is to provide a metal ironing table which combines convenient weight to sufiicient strength, and which has in addition the safety factor which no wooden table can have, namely, the complete elimina tion of any fire hazard. A further object is to provide a metal ironing board so constructed and designed that a heating element can be included within the box-like board structure with absolute freedom from fire danger. jects will be apparent in the subsequent description.

Folding ironing boards have been in use for many years and consist of a flat top made from a single piece of wood and folding legs either of wood or metal hinged to the lower surface of the board to fold flat against the board proper when not in use. In this structure the wooden top is obviously the weakest element because it is subjected to severe and varying conditions such as heat from the ironing operation, bending moments at the outer unsupported end which is spaced 8. very considerable distance from the forward support, compression from the irons weight and the pressure imposed upon it by the user. The repeated absorption and yieldingup of moisture, the gradual further drying out of the wood in some climates, and the rough usage result in checking, warping, cracking and finally in the breaking of the top.

Various attempts have been made to produce a metal top for an ironing table for analogous uses but without success. The requirements of such an article are severe and varied. Its cost and weight must approximate closely those of a wooden top. It must have uniform minimum resistance substantially all over its surface to the operating pressure of the iron and it must withstand severe bending strains imposed upon its forward overhanging end portion which is un- Other obportion is also weakened by being narrowed with respect to the width of the main portion of the board in order to accommodate shirts, sleeves and the like which are slipped over the extending end. For example, a conventional board is approximately four and one-half feet long, one and one-quarter feet wide, and in wood weighs from seven and one-halfv to nine and one-half pounds, depending upon the particular wood used and the amount of contained moisture at any given time. It must support forty pounds on the etxended narrow end without undue deflection, setting or breakage, and it must withstand transverse bending strains of more than that amount. Previous attempts at metal boards have weighed 50% to 100% more than the conventional wooden boards, at two to three times the cost.

My improved board has the strength and weight of a wooden board at a comparable cost. It secures these characteristics by fabricating a' given weight of metal in the form of sheets into a closed box-like structure of a predetermined minimum compressive strength over its entire area with high resistance to bending moments longitudinally, transversely and diagonally. Its box-like characteristic not only gives it extreme strength for its weight, but lends itself perfectly to the inclusion of electrical heating elements to warm the upper surface and facilitate and hasten the ironing operation, which is one purpose to which the board may be adapted, as will be explained later herein.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, said invention, then, consists of the means hereinafter fully described and particu- 'larly pointed out in the claims; the annexed drawings and the following descr ption setting supported for a considerable distance. This end the ironing board, taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary longitudinal crosssectional view of the ironing board, taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary sectional view showing a modified form of side wall and flange construction;

Fig. 6 is a transverse sectional view of a-ribbed or channel form of top;

Fig. 7 is a view similar to Fig. 6 but showing heating elements mounted in the top;

Fig. 8 is a section similar to Fig. 3 but showing heating elements mounted in the top;

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary bottom plan view of the top shown in Fig. 7 showing the cover plate and control unit for the heating elements;

Fig. 10 is a view similar to Fig. 9 but showing the necessary cover plate for the form shown in Fig. 8; and 1 Fig. 11 is a sectional view on the line il-ll of Fig. 9.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, Fig. 1 shows an ironing table consisting of a top l and a conventional set of. folding legs H secured thereto, the legs being shown in their extended or open position and being foldable against the lower surface of the top.

The top consists of two thin sheets of metal l2 and I3, the top or upper sheet [2 being preferably crowned transversely to a slight extent, i. e. approximately one-eighth of an inch, such crown being desirable in order to avoid any possibility of the top buckling while in use. The sheet i2 is also crowned longitudinally to a very slight extent, The extent of transverse and longitudinal crowning is not such as to interfere with the ironing operations. The lower sheet I3 is corrugated to form a series of transversely spaced longitudinally extending corrugations or channels [4 of inverted U-shaped angular crosssection, that is to say the corrugations consist of flat upper and lower portions and vertical sides. These upper portions of the corrugations I4 are pressed or indented to provide a' series of longitudinally spaced projecting portions in the form of embossments or buttons 15 extendin above the plane of the upper flat portions of the corrugations l4. These embossments or buttons may be of any desired shape, although I prefer to form them in the shape of round or semi-spherical buttons with flattened tops for contact surfaces with the top sheet. provides desired strength and efiective support for the sheet 12.

The two sheets are placed with the smooth top sheet I! resting on the buttons or projecting portions l of the lower sheet and are then rigidly secured together, preferably by spot welding. Ob-

This form of button viously, however, all of the buttons need not be welded or otherwise secured to the top sheet to maintain the desired relationship between the' Y sheets. This forms the two sheets into a box-like structure,'as shown in Fig. 3, which equals or exceeds a wooden top in strength and stifiness; In order to preserve and accommodate the transthe rows adjacent the center rows.

To aid in obtaining the desired longitudinal strength without excess weight, the edges of the two sheets are flanged downwardly and thenv rolled or bent to form a stifltening flange l6 completely around and under the edge or periphery of the board or top, as shown in Fig. 3. The width of this flange should be sufficient to prevent lateral buckling and the depth should be such as to supplement the stiffness of the box top proper and increase the strength of the entire structure. The use of such flange I6 is for practical or commercial reasons as well as for strictly structural strength as it allows for the use of very thin sheets and projections of a depth that are easily pressed into the sheet. In forming the projections I5, it is advantageous to have the projections in one row staggered with respect to those in the adjoining rows, as this provides increased strength.

A modified form of flange and edge construction is shown in Fig. 5 in which the edge of the top sheet 20 is turned down into a flange 2! but the edge of the bottom sheet is turned up to form a flange 22, the two flanges fitting snugly and the top flange is then formed into a roll or bead 23 underneath and tightly against the bottom sheet adjacent the outer edge thereof. The two flanges may be welded together as shown at 24 to aid in stiffening the edges if desired.

It is to be noted that the strength of the board against stresses applied thereto is derived primarily from the corrugations in the lower sheet, andthat these corrugations provide therebetween channels or spaces 11. In communication with these channels or spaces I! are the spaces I8 between the buttons [5.

In the form shown in Fig. 6 a'slightly different bottom sheet or pan construction is employed. In this form the bottom sheet 28 is formed in a series of continuous longitudinal ribs or channels 29, the upper flat portions 30 being in direct contact with the underside of the top sheet instead of having the buttons as in the previous form. In this construction some lateral stifiness is nec essarily sacrificed and it is desirable to use one or more cross braces 31 which will preferably be secured to both the bottom flat portions 34 oi! the channels and to the edge flange 35 to tie the entire structure together. The edges of both upper and lower sheets are turned down into flanges and are rolled togetherin the form of a continuous edge head or roll 3! to aid in stiffening and strengthening the entire structure.

Where heating elements are to be mounted in the board, these are preferably mounted in the channels or corrugations as illustrated in Figs. 7 and 8. In the form shown in Figs. 2 and 8 the heating element consists of a suitably insulated resistance element 4|! which is shown as a single wireentering through a cover plate 4| and extending forwardly in one outside channel and returning in the next channel after being threaded between two buttons near the forward or nose end of the board. The element then extends outwardly in the third or center channel and is returned in this channel so that it again returns in the flfth channel (see Fig. 10) and is then threaded between buttons to form a return wire 42 to the other contact in the cover plate 4|. This plate also carries a suitable outlet for the plug connection 43 of an iron and a suitable extension cord and plug 44 for attachment to any suitable source of electrical energy such as a base or wall convenience outlet. A suitable aperture 48 is provided in the bottom of one of the channels for the two ends of the heating element to pass through and into the cover plate.

In the rib type board of Fig. 6 the heating element 5| is laid in loops in the channels being brought out through suitable openings 52 in each channel and the cover plate extends over all the channels to conceal the wiring and to prevent accidental contact therewith. As shown in Figs. 9 and 11 the element is a continuous unit and to prevent abrasion of its insulating cover a sheet 53 of suitable insulating material is mounted against the under side of the board which has openings 54, the edge of the sheet being in the form of a lip 55 turned into the opening 52 so as to prevent direct contact between the heating element and the edge of the channel opening.

The heating elements are placed in position before the two sheets are welded together. being held by any suitable means as itis securely held once the two sheets are united into the box-like top.

The weight and thickness of the two sheets of metal forming the board or top should of course be such as to obtain the desired lightness and strength, approximating those of a wooden board such as is now in general use. To obtain these results, the depth of the projections and their -size as well as the depth and size of the corrugations or ribs must'be closely determined in order to obtain a maximum strength with the desired weight. The use of a reinforcing flange aids in obtaining the necessary longitudinal strength,

particularly with the overhang usually employed at the nose ofthe board. The height of the projections or buttons is limited by the stretch of the metal employed and the spacing therebetween.

From the foregoing it may be observed that my metal board combines the strength of a new wooden top with the desirability of long life of metal. The use of my metal top eliminates the cracking and warping of a wooden top, but its greatest advantage is the complete elimination of the fire hazard always heretofore present.

The cost of a metal top as described above approximates that of a wooden top.

In addition, my metal top, being formed in a box-like structure with upper and lower sheets being spaced apart by metallic members, provides natural and necessary avenues in which heating coils or elements can be placed so as-to give a uniform distribution and consequent uniform temperature all over the board top.

Other modes of applying the principle of my invention may be employed instead of the one explained, change beingmade as regards the structure herein disclosed, provided the means stated by the following claim or the equivalent of such stated means be employed;

- I therefore particularly point out and distinctly claim as my invention:

A metallic ironing board comprising spaced metallic sheets, one of which is relatively flat and the other of which is longitudinally corrugated to provide enclosed channels extending longitudinally of the board, said corrugations having buttons protruding therefrom and in contact with the other sheet; the space between said buttons forming passages communicating with said channels, certain of said buttons being rigidly united to said upper sheet, and an electric heating element mounted within the channels formed by said corrugations and passing through certain of said communicating passages.

HORACE'B. FAY. 

